One little trip
by Artdirector123
Summary: Pearl is cleaning up after the events of Space Race, and meets a strange man on the beach
1. Chapter 1

A cool breeze wafted through the night air on the long beach. If she were human she would probably shiver, but she wasn't. Considering the job she was undertaking, that was a good thing. What was that job? searching for the part of Greg's van she borrowed among the heaps of smoldering rubble. The night before she took Steven out with her in a rickety rocket made up of primitive machinery. She had pushed it too far and the two of them nearly exploded along with the rocket. If it weren't for him she would have killed them both.

Pearl kicked a broken vacuum tube with a sigh and sat down on what was left of a thruster. What was wrong with her? Was she really that desperate to leave that she thought that stupid ship was a good idea? Even if she had succeeded in leaving the atmosphere, a million other things could have gone wrong. An asteroid could have hit them, Steven could have run out of food or oxygen, a thruster could have broken, and so one. Even by some miracle they succeeded entirely, Steven would have missed out on the majority of the lives of his human friends! Would one trip have been worth it for him?

"No," she said to herself, "But you weren't thinking of Steven. Not really. You were only think of what you wanted, Pearl." She looked up to the starry banner that lit up the night above her. She could still make out the faint glimmer of the one she used to call home. She could also recognize the one the humans called "The North Star". The more she looked at it, the more she could recall an old earth tale about wishing on the brightest star in the sky. Although it was ridiculous, the more she gazed at it, the more she was tempted to try out the old custom. "I wish..." she started, but then shook her head, "No this is stupid..." She then got up to continue to look for the missing piece. Not a few minutes later she found herself gazing at it again. She finally caved in and partook in the silly human custom. "I wish I could go back into space," she said, "just one more time. Then I could spend the rest of my time here on earth."

Just as Pearl turned to continue her search, the breeze picked up again and she heard a loud, foreign noise.

Vworp...vworp...vworp...

Pearl turn to see...a police box? She raised an eyebrow at the peculiar sight. The last time she had seen one of them was in the 1960's! What was it doing here? More importantly how did it get here? It wasn't there before and it didn't look the slightest bit burnt unlike the rest of the rubble. Pearl took a few careful steps towards it. Suddenly, the doors flung open. Orange light flooded out of it. She took a few steps back as a strange young man exited the blue police box. He had floppy brown hair, a large chin, a tweed jacket, and a bow-tie.

"Oh hello!" he said looking at her with slight surprise. With a snap of his fingers the doors closed behind him. "I wasn't expecting company on this little visit," he said. He then walked past her and looked around the beach. His face scrunched up in confusion. Before she could ask him who he was he turned to her and said, "Excuse me but is this not the right time?"

"I-I'm sorry, What?" she asked.

"I came here to see the blooming of these special flowers my friend planted a long time ago. I promised her I'd come and visit when they were in season," he said, "I probably missed them again, didn't I? I'm terrible at waiting so I tend to skip too far ahead trying to be just on ti..." suddenly he stopped rambling and walk right up to Pearl...until he was only inches apart from her. She was tempted to back away when he breathed in deeply and took a step back on his own accord.

"I'm sorry, am I on the wrong planet?" he asked.

"...I'm afraid I don't understand what you mean, sir," she said, becoming more unsettled by him. Was he really from outer space? Or was he just a local crazy?

"We'll you not human," he said pulling out some kind of a wand. "You're actually a..." he said, pointing the buzzing object in her face before moving it away and looking at it, "a polymorphic humanoid living gem! Fascinating!" "As I was saying, you're not human, and I don't see any humans on this beach, so I'm wondering if I landed on earth or not," he said.

"Yes, this is Earth..." Pearl said carefully, "are you saying you're not human? You certainly look like one..."

"I assure you I'm not," he said with a smile, "Out of curiosity, what's your name?"

"Pearl," she said, "Who are you?"

"That's a lovely name," he said with a smile, "I'm the Doctor. It's a pleasure to meet you."

At the word "doctor", Pearl suddenly understood just what this man was, and she felt her heart sink in fear. She had heard the myths on the homeworld, but never thought them to be true! Only stories to scare little gemlings into behaving. Quickly she pulled out her spear and pointed it at him.

His hands shot in the air but the smile on his face never left. "You pulled that out of the stone on your head!" he said, excitedly, "How did you do that? Is there a pocket dimension in there? Or do have the ability to manifest objects with your mind like that green lantern fellow?"

Pearl was thrown off beat for a second by his excitement but quickly went back to her aggressive stance. "I'm warning you, if you so much as hurt a single life form on this planet, so help me I'll-" she started but the Doctor cut her off.

"Woah, woah, woah!" he said, "Who said anything about hurting anyone?"

"But you're the Oncoming Storm!" she said, "You leave nothing but death and destruction in your wake!"

"I guess my reputation precedes me..." He said quietly with a sad sigh, "look, I promise I would never hurt the earth. I like it and the people that live on it too much to even THINK of causing any harm to it." That didn't seem to assure her, though. "Look, how about I make you a deal," he said, "How about you stop pointing that sharp object in my face, and I'll leave this planet, alright?"

"How do I know you'll keep to your end of the deal?" she said with a suspicious glare.

"Hmmmm..." the Doctor said thinking. "Alright! how about this," he said pulling a key from his pocket,"This is a TARDIS key. It will glow if I land anywhere near this planet." That was a lie. It would only glow if he landed within a mile of her, but she didn't need to know that. "Watch, I'll demonstrate," he said, running back to the blue box.

"Wha-Where do you think you're going?!" she said. She ran up to it but it was already taking off. She backed away as she heard the strange noise from earlier and the sand whipped up around her. The box began to fade in and out of existence as the light on top grew brighter. Soon it was gone.

Not a minute later, she felt a warm sensation in her hand. She looked to see the key glowing, and then heard the noise come again from behind her. She turned to see the box standing about twenty feet behind her. The Doctor stepped out with a smile. "See?" he said.

"Very well," she said, letting her weapon dissipate. As she saw him turn to leave, she got an idea. It was crazy, but not too crazy to give it a try. "Wait!" she said, causing him to peek his head out of the box. "...Could...could I ask you for a favor?"

"Seeing as you just threatened me with a spear a little earlier, I'd like to know what you want first," he said.

"I remember in one of the myths about you that your ship can go anywhere in time and space," she said, "I was wondering if you could take me on one trip into outer space. I'd be willing to pay the favor back." She immediately regretted saying the last part as she saw a grin grace his face.

"It would be my pleasure," he said as he opened the door for her. His smile fell though as he spoke again. "One condition though," he said, "you'll have to hold me to our one trip agreement. I have a habit of extending that farther than I should."

She smiled and said, "I'll try my best." She then stepped into the blue box and the doctor followed, shutting the door behind them.

Xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

To be continued...

**sorry if this isn't all that great. It's my first SU fic. still I hope you like it and tell me what you think!**


	2. Chapter 2

Pearl took in the whole room. A bright orange glow filled it. There was a glass floor and in the center was a console that looked like a mishmash of old earth objects. Upon seeing this she began to wonder just how stable this ship was. Not only were most of the bits and pieces of machinery attached to the control panel outdated, but also terribly unreliable. There was a typewriter, parts of a gramophone, old sink knobs, and...was that a pinball machine?! Of what use could that be?! The only part that did not look like some kind of earth technology was the cylinder in the center. With it's slight glow and strangely shaped piston inside, it almost seem organic...

"So," the Doctor said with a clap, dragging Pearl out of her thoughts, "What do you think, eh? A lot to take in I presume."

"Indeed," Pearl said turning back to the console and taking a closer look at it. The Doctor's grin widened. He always loved to see the surprise on the face of those who first entered the TARDIS. He always loved to hearing those five iconic words. "How does this stay together?!" she said. The Doctor frowned. Those were not the five words he was expecting.

"Excuse me?" he said.

"Not only is the outside of your ship made of wood, but your console is a mishmash of...well, junk!" she said stretching her arms out for emphasis. "And what is this?!" she said with disgust. She had wandered around the console to find a bowl of custard sitting on the control panel.

"It's custard," he said, slightly annoyed.

"It's a safety hazard is what it is!" she said picking it up and trying to find a place for it, "If that had gotten in the controls it could have cause some serious damage to them!"

"Everyone's a critic..." the Doctor said, rolling his eyes. He then took the bowl from her to dump the rest in a trash can.

At that moment Pearl noticed the slightly annoyed look on the Doctor's face. "Sorry," she said, "I'm so used to criticizing Amethyst about how she keeps her room and on the rest of the messes she makes, I sort of do it without thinking."

"It's fine," he said, shoving the bowl into the storage unit in the base of the console, "I've gotten criticism from all my companions at some point, even this ship itself...long story, don't ask. Anyways, I'm just a little disappointed because you didn't mention how my ship was 'bigger on the inside'."

Pearl raised an eyebrow at that. "Why would I? Gems have had the technology to make items dimensionally transcendental for centuries!" she said.

"Really?" the Doctor said in a disappointed tone, "Well that just sucks the fun out of explaining it to you." "But don't worry. The ship isn't actually made of wood. It's just a disguise," he said.

"Really?" Pearl said, "it felt a lot like wood to the touch..."

"That's the beauty of the TARDIS," he said patting the controls lovingly, "She has what is known as a chameleon circuit. Within the first nanosecond of landing, she scans the entire area within several miles of landing and determines the perfect disguise to blend into its surroundings!" His eyes sparkled as he finished explaining. "And then," he said, sparkle turning to embarrassment, "It turns into a police box..."

"Why does it do that? Is is faulty?" Pearl asked.

"Yeah...the chameleon circuit broke after I landed it sometime ago..." he said continuing in embarrassment.

"Why haven't you fixed it? Do you not have the parts?" she asked.

"Weellll...No, I have plenty of parts...I've just grown to like it, ya know?" he said, "It's kind of become my symbol and blue is a beautiful color."

"You don't know how to fix it, do you?" Pearl stated more than asked.

"I can neither confirm nor deny that," the Doctor said with a wild grin.

"Pardon me for saying this...but why are people afraid of you again?" Pearl asked.

"Well, I don't mean to brag, but I can be quite intimidating when I feel like it," he said with a smirk as he straightened his bowtie.

"Uh-huh..." Pearl said, cocking an eyebrow.

"So!" the Doctor said, turning to the controls, "Anywhere in time and or space...where would you like to go?"

Pearl sat and thought. She really hadn't thought this through. Most of the planets she had been to were gem controlled. If she stepped foot on any of them, she would be captured in an instant! "How about you decide," she said, "So long as it isn't dangerous or gem controlled, I'll be willing to go there."

She immediately regretted her decision as an excited and wild smile crossed the face of the Oncoming Storm. "Pearl, you have just made my day!" he said. He then began to frantically pull levers and press buttons, running around like a child on Christmas morning. The piston in the center of the room began to move as a wheezing, groaning sound filled the air. Soon the whole room began to shake and Pearl had to grab onto the railing for support. Yup, she was definitely regretting this. "Hahah!" the Doctor said with glee, "You are going to love this!"

Pearl was not loving this though. She was trapped in a box, rocketing through time and space with a mad man to who knows where! She had no idea how to fly this thing, let alone get it to turn around. All she could do was hold on for the ride.

"Geronimo!"

Xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

to be continued...

**a/n: sorry for the wait guys! Finals were killer. Anyways, thanks for all the support. :) Hope you liked this chapter!**


	3. Chapter 3

The TARDIS shook and groaned as they traveled through time and space. Pearl gripped the railing like her life depended on it while the Doctor worked the controls. She was filled to her core with fear. She had never been in a ship like this but what was going on right now did not seem like the ship was functioning correctly. When she looked over to the Doctor, however, he looked calm, as if this was nothing to worry about. "Pardon me," she said, still gripping the railing as hard as she could, "Is everything alright? Is all this noise and motion supposed to happen?"

"Yes! Well no," the Doctor said,"If you ask a certain friend of mine, they'll say it's not supposed to make the noise, but I like it so I'm keeping it. The shakiness is a bit more complicated. It's completely normal but because a TARDIS is supposed to be controlled by six people, technically it's not supposed to."

Pearl gaped at him in shock. "How long have you been driving it like this?!" she questioned.

"Oooh that's a tough one..." the Doctor said, looking up from his controls, "I'd have to say...close to 800 years? I might be off a century or so. Time gets a bit weird in here. To be honest I stopped keeping track of how old I was after 900. It's all just estimates now..."

"You're insane!" Pearl said.

The shaking finally stopped as they landed with a thud. "Oi!" he responded, turning to her with folded arms, "I prefer the term 'mad man with a box', thank you very much! And I'd like to see you try to pilot a time/spaceship ment for six all on your own." He then began walking towards the doors of the TARDIS.

"Wait!" Pearl said, causing him to stop. "Shouldn't you do an environment check first?" she suggested, "You don't know what could be out there."

The Doctor raised an eyebrow at her. "Alright," he said. He then continued to walk to the door and opened it up. "It's sunny and 74 degrees fahrenheit," he said looking out side. He then pulled out his sonic and took a brief scan. "Radiation is low, and the atmosphere has a similar concentration to earth, aside from a slight increase in oxygen. Also," he said pulling out a yoyo a stepping outside. "This planet's gravitational field is only slightly weaker than earth's," he finished, doing a trick with the yoyo, "May we go now?"

Pearl glared at him before moving towards the door. "You should have done a real environment check," she criticized.

"Well maybe you should have a little more trust in me," he replied.

She gave him a long look. "I can think of a lot of reasons not to trust you," she said, "but I can sum up all of them in just two phrases: 1. Oncoming Storm, and 2. Mad-man with a box."

The Doctor frowned as she exited his time machine. He stuck his pointer finger out and opened his mouth to speak, but then closed it again. "Ok," he said, "You do have a fair point. But I've been flying her for centuries, I know what I'm doing."

Pearl wasn't listening to him anymore. She was captivated by the scenery. All around them were trees with frosty pink bark and turquoise leaves. The grass was a light blue. There was a light orange pond near by that almost looked like it was made of gold. "This is...amazing," she said.

The Doctor smiled at that. "Welcome to Andromidiannis," he said, "this place is known for its scenery, and happens to be a popular tourist destination. They always have some kind of festival going on." "In fact," he continued, "they should have one going on right now. The Day of Kings parade, I believe. Care to come with me to see it? We're right outside the capitol, Charivillos."

Pearl turned to face the Doctor. Behind him she could see the outline of a city with tall green and blue spires. She bit her lip for a second. Usually festivals meant crowds, something she was not a fan of. ...However, she did want to see the city itself. It looked magnificent and she could probably find at least one quiet place in there like a garden, museum, or a library. Yes, that would be nice.

"I will join you," she said, "but if you don't mind, I'd like to avoid the more crowded parts of the city."

The Doctor smiled. "No problem," he said, "Some of the biggest celebration areas can be a bit much for even me. Besides, they have a wonderful color fountain in one of the private parks that I'm sure you'd love to see! Come on." The Doctor then began heading back to the TARDIS. "I hope you don't mind but I'd rather not have to walk a long ways if we need something from my ship," he explained as she followed him back to the little blue box.

"Very well," she said, a bit apprehensive to take another shaky trip in the TARDIS, "though could you please try to make the ride a bit less...bumpy?"

"I'll try my best, but don't worry. The first time is always the worst," he said, opening the door. Pearl followed him inside.

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

to be continued...

**this is a bit of a short update. Sorry about that. Anyways, did you guys catch last night's steven universe episode? It was really awesome! I loved the song, but I am really worried for Pearl. She is seeming less and less sane as each episode goes by. Who else is excited for tonight's episode, though?! I know I am! I'm still really hopeful that Ronaldo will have something to do with peridot. But with how early it is in the season, I wouldn't be surprised if this episode is just filler...except I do have to wonder since the first episode of last steven bomb was a Pearl episode and this last episode was a Pearl episode if there is going to be a running theme of parallels between the two steven bombs. **

**Anyways, I hope you guys enjoyed this chapter, please tell me what you think!**


	4. Chapter 4

'This was a bad idea,' thought Pearl as she tried to block out the noise coming from outside. The Doctor had apologized many times but it didn't help the fact that they were stuck in the very center of the city towards the ending area of the parade going on. Apparently, most of the city had been blocked off for the day for whatever reason. The policeman had told them it was took keep crime from happening while the events were going on. They managed to fine refuge from the partying in the down town library, which was where they currently were.

"Are you sure you don't want to see any of the parade," the Doctor said from his spot at the window, "the floats are quite magnificent." Above the blue heads of the civilians on the streets, the Doctor could see several floats that could put Carnival floats to shame.

"I'm fine, I assure you," she responded with annoyance. She was currently burying her noise in a particularly old tome on the planet's history. One thing she was amazed about was the the translation circuit the TARDIS had. Being able to read anything without previous knowledge of the language it was written in was a dream come true for her, although the fact that it meant the Doctor's time machine could get inside her head was a bit unsettling. The Doctor fell silent again and went back to watching the parade.

Xxxxxxxxxxxxx

(Meanwhile...)

Several strange creatures watched from a space ship above, their view was centered directly on the parade below. They had long, curving bodies and crescent shaped faces. "All the people are gathered on the parade route, and still unaware. Should we continue to the next phase?" one said to the other.

The one standing infront of the control deck stayed silent for a moment. "Not quite yet," it said, "but very soon. We just have to wait a few more moments."

Xxxxxxxxxxxxx

"That's strange..." the Doctor said. This caught Pearl's attention.

"What's strange? Is something wrong?" she asked, looking up from her book for the first time.

"The king on his float over there," the Doctor said, pointing to the float, "he's not smiling."

"So?" Pearl said, raising an eyebrow.

"I know the king, king Ukaboc," he continued, " and he's always been a jolly fellow. He loves a good party...but right now, he just looks bored." Pearl walked up to the window to see what he was talking about. Indeed the large blue man on top of the float did not look happy as he lazily waved to the cheering crowd

"Maybe he's having a bad day?" she suggested, though she had a feeling she was wrong.

"No something's wrong," the Doctor said, in a quiet, and much more serious tone. Suddenly, the floats stopped and the image of the king began to shimmer. The crowd became quiet with confusion, as the floats turned into what appeared to be some kind of tanks. The people operating them, including the king himself, turned into aliens with long bodies and crescent shaped faces. "Uh oh," the Doctor said.

Gasps filled the crowd but were silenced as the crescent creature, formally disguised as the king, spoke. "People of Charivillos!" it called out, "We have you and your city surrounded! Come quietly with us or be annihilated!" As the creature finished, the sky began to shimmer and a giant space craft appeared. The crowds of blue people began to scream and panic as the crescent creatures pulled out weapons.

The Doctor suddenly grabbed Pearl's hand. "Run," he whispered, before tugging her along out the back of **the** library. Outside they were quickly stopped by three of the crescent creatures holding some kind of guns. Pearl quickly summoned her wepon as the creatures cocked their guns. She was about to attack when the Doctor whispered to her. "Put away your weapon," he said.

She turned to him to look at him like he was insane. "What?!" she whispered back.

"I have a plan, just trust me and put your weapon away," he said.

Pearl looked at him for several seconds before letting her spear dissipate. "Alright now what's your plan?" she whispered to him.

"This," he said raising his hands. "We surrender!" he shouted. With that, Pearl's hand connected to her face with a loud smack.

Xxxxxxxxxxxx

to be continued...

**Sorry this took so long. Still I hope you guys enjoy it. I'll try to get the next one up soon. Let me know what you think!**


End file.
